Thailand is third biggest market for Norwegian seafood
Thailand has become a major importer of Norwegian seafood, with salmon and trout purchases totalling 8,385 tons, worth THB2.8 billion in the first four months of this year, according to a senior executive of a Norwegian seafood corporation.
From January to April 2022, Norway exported 8,385 tons of fresh salmon and fjord trout to Thailand valued at THB2.8 billion, said Asbjorn Warvik Rortveit, Southeast Asia regional director of the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC).
The exports represented a 23 per cent increase from a year earlier while the value increased 81 per cent from the same period last year, he said.
“The numbers show promising market growth in Thailand,” he added.
Thailand is one of Norway’s top three markets after China and South Korea, said Rortveit, citing NSC’s 2021 consumer report.
According to the report, 21 per cent of Thai respondents said they bought salmon online through e-commerce websites or mobile apps “quite often” or “very often”. And 59 per cent of those surveyed said it was “very important” for stores to have quality fish and seafood brands.
“The overall seafood trend across the world today stems from younger consumers, including those in Thailand,” said Rortveit.
“Thai consumers remain very trendy and open to explore new options while quality is not to be compromised when it comes to food,” the executive said.
NSC, a public company owned by Norway’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, is taking part in the THAIFEX-Anuga Asia 2022 being held at Impact conference centre in Nonthaburi province until May 28.
The company is showcasing premium Norwegian seafood at the “Seafood from Norway” pavilion, featuring seminars on NSC’s seafood trend reports to highlight the importance of educating and inspiring consumers about the health benefits of eating seafood.
The Norwegian ambassador to Thailand, Kjersti Rodsmoen, and
Norway’s Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Ocean Policy, Vidar Ulriksen, recently visited the "Seafood from Norway" pavilion.
During a live interview session, NSC’s Rortveit shared his analysis on consumer insights relevant to Thailand and other Southeast Asian markets.
Also at the pavilion, chef Jimmy Chok, best known for his creation of innovative recipes that blend Asian ingredients with Western-style cooking, hosted cooking demonstrations using premium-quality seafood including salmon, fjord trout, and Norwegian saba.
The Norwegian seafood industry, as the world’s leader in seafood production, values transparency around sustainability and product management from catch or harvest, through processing and transport before arriving at the destination of a fish handler, the NSC said.
Norway is one of the world’s most sustainable seafood producers backed by craftsmanship, technology, data, insights, and their love for nature, the company said.